Law & Justice

Can the spirit of California's gig economy bill spread to India? -Gayatri Nair

Published on Sep 20, 2019 Modified on Sep 20, 2019

-TheWire.in

For right and wrong reasons, the current dispensation celebrates the creation of any form of employment in India, regardless of quality.

The state of California recently passed a landmark bill that has the potential to unleash a systemic change in the gig economy. On the back of a recent judgement by the California Supreme Court, Assembly Bill 5 has legislated that workers in the gig economy be classified as workers and not as independent contractors. Its effects are likely to resonate deeply with tech corporates such as Uber and Lyft in the US which built their businesses on this distinction.

The Bill does more than just alter nomenclature; it attacks the very foundation on which the gig economy is premised.

While this is a huge step taken to guarantee decent working conditions for the American gig worker, its ramifications may not be global and it is unlikely that Indian workers might see a similar change in policy.